


Honey, I Brought Home a Ghost

by poddunkk



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Avater the Last Airbender, Bisexual Sokka (Avatar), Bisexual Zuko (Avatar), But mostly fluff, Fluff and Angst, Gyatso's Spirit Shop, Idiots in Love, Multi, The Jasmine Dragon (Avatar), Tui and La (Avatar), Zuko is so whipped, avatar AU, oh my god they were roommates, sokka is oblivious
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-30
Updated: 2020-06-30
Packaged: 2021-03-04 00:54:40
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,100
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24994972
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/poddunkk/pseuds/poddunkk
Summary: Sokka doesn't believe in ghosts. He never has, not when Katara came into his room crying when they were kids, because of Gran Gran's scary bedtime stories, and certainly not when Aang insisted on cleansing his and Zuko's apartment with sage. But he needed a job, and hey, the girl that worked the counter at Gyatso's? She was super cute. So that's how Sokka found himself as a spirit-medium-in-training at the Tui and La Spirit Shop, and coincidentally, how he met his first 'ghost'.orThe one where Sokka gets scared, and Zuko gets a boyfriend.
Relationships: Aang/Katara (Avatar), Minor or Background Relationship(s), Past Sokka/Suki (Avatar) - Relationship, Sokka/Zuko (Avatar), Suki/Ty Lee (Avatar), past Zuko/Mai (Avatar)
Comments: 16
Kudos: 256





	Honey, I Brought Home a Ghost

Sokka was going to kill Aang. 

He loved the kid, he really did, and he was good to his little sister. But damnit, when he'd agreed to let him 'cleanse his room of negative energy' he hadn't meant at 7am. Of course, Zuko was already awake (he never slept past sunrise). Sokka heard Aang's chipper voice before Zuko knocked on his bedroom door, and groaned into his pillow. 

"Uh, Sokka? Aang and Katara are here. He says you gave him permission to... cleanse the apartment?" 

Sokka rolled over, looking up at Zuko, who was standing in his doorway holding a cup of tea, through squinted eyes. It was too early for this. 

By the time Sokka had rolled out of bed, throwing on a t-shirt and pulling his hair into its usual ponytail, Zuko had a cup of tea waiting for him and their friends on the kitchen counter. Katara pulled him into a hug, fretting over how badly he needed a haircut and Sokka smiled despite himself. He missed Katara, even her nagging. Before he could even say hello to him, Aang was talking a mile a minute, holding a bundle of sage in one hand, and Katara's hand in the other. Katara watched him fondly as he talked about the negative energy he was feeling, coming from Sokka's room. 

"Have you been carrying around that crystal I gave you, Sokka? I hope you have, it's meant to ward off the negative energy you seem to attract." Aang asked. He meant nothing by the comment, of course - Aang would never hurt a fly - but how could Sokka not be offended by that?

"Hey, what's that suposed to mea-" Katara gave him a pointed look, and Sokka sighed, "Yeah. Yeah, sure."

Aang hummed, seeming to consider this. "Maybe it's worse than I thought... Anyway, I'm gonna get started!" He thrust out the sage, fishing a lighter out of his pocket and smiling brightly. 

Sokka didn't miss the way Zuko smirked over the rim of his mug, pausing to meet his eyes before clearing his throat. "Have at it, buddy." 

Aang rushed off to Sokka's room, the apartment soon filling with the smell of burning sage that made Sokka's nose crinkle. Why did he agree to this, again?

"Thank you for the tea, Zuko. What kind is it?" Katara asked.

Sokka pretended not to notice the way Zuko's golden eyes lit up like they always did when he got the chance to brag on his Uncle's tea shop. He loved when Zuko spoke passionately about something, even if it was as simple as The Jasmine Dragon, but it was rare. Even now, he kept his reply short.

"Uncle's special blend. It's the only kind Sokka will drink." He teased.

Katara laughed, and Sokka took another sip of the tea to hide the slight blush creeping up his neck. It really was good tea. 

"How is your Uncle? I hear business is really good. Are you still working there, too?"

"Yeah, I am. The Jasmine Dragon is doing great, Uncle couldn't be happier." Zuko smiled softly.

Sokka hadn't realized he was staring until both pairs of eyes, golden and blue, turned to him. He blinked, "What?"

Katara rolled her eyes at him, bumping his arm with her elbow. "I asked if you'd found a job yet, dingus."

Sokka sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "I mean, no, but... Iroh's letting me pick up a couple shifts at The Jasmine Dragon, so I'm fine." 

That part was true, at least. Zuko's Uncle had been kind enough to let him help out at the tea shop, but Sokka was terrible at serving customers, and even worse at making tea. It really wasn't going to work out, and they all knew it - even if Zuko was too kind to tell him so. 

"Well, Gyatso is hiring, you know. It might be fun for us to work together again, right?" 

Sokka snorted. "You want me to come work with you and Aang at the voodoo shop, and sell mood rings and tell fortunes? Yeah, right."

Katara pursed her lips, folding her arms across her chest. "Tui and La is not a voodoo shop, Sokka. And we don't tell fortunes! It's spiritual guidance, and Aang is a medium."

"What, like he talks to ghosts? Come on, Katara, spiritual guidance? You sound like Gran Gran." He'd meant it as a joke, but it was obvious Katara didn't find him funny, as per usual. 

"I do not! And you know, you could be a little more grateful. I'm the one trying to help you find a job!" She huffed.

"All done!" Aang chirped, walking back into their small kitchen. He looked between the two siblings, oblivious, "What'd I miss?"

"Nothing." Katara grabs his hand, frowning at Sokka. "Let's go, we have to open up the shop today."

"Oh, okay, bye guys!" Aang yells as they go. "Sokka, I left you some more sage on your desk!"

As the couple left, Sokka sunk into a seat at the kitchen table and groaned. Zuko laughed under his breath, and Sokka gave him a look. "What are you laughing at?"

Zuko shrugged. "Would it really be so bad?" He mused. "To work at Tui and La?"

"Oh, not you, too!" Sokka threw his hands up. "Don't tell me you believe that spirit world mumbo jumbo."

"I dunno, Sokka. But you know it's important to your sister, and Aang."   
So basically, Sokka needed to apologize. Why did Zuko always have to be the voice of reason? 

"Yeah, yeah." Sokka downed the rest of his tea, taking the mug to the sink. "Hey, what time do you work today?"

"I'm off today, remember? I'm getting lunch with Mai."

Sokka paused, frowning slightly. "Mai? Like... As in your ex-girlfriend, Mai?" He turned to look at him. 

Zuko quirked his brow, "Yeah?"

"Oh. Well... Have fun." Sokka forced a smile. 

"Sure." He heard Zuko mumble as he retreated back to his room, where everything smelled too strongly of sage and incense. 

Later that day, after hours of taking order after order, Sokka finally got a break just as Suki walks in. 

Uncle Iroh, Sokka's friendly, tea-loving boss, gave him a kind smile. "Why don't you take a break, Sokka? You are working too hard! Go say hello to your friend."

Sokka thanked him, just as Suki walked up to the counter. "Hey stranger."

He smiled brightly, rounding the corner and pulling her into a hug. "Suki! Where've you been?"

Suki raised a brow at him, hand on her hip. "Where have I been? I'm pretty sure you're the one who didn't answer my text this morning."

Sokka laughed sheepishly. "Yeah, sorry about that. I had a, uh... weird morning."

Suki rolls her eyes at him, shaking her head. "You mean you woke up before noon?"

"Hey!" Sokka laughed. "So what are you doing here? Come to visit me?"

"Don't flatter yourself. I'm on a date!" Suki blushes, slightly, and Sokka's eyes widened in surprise. 

"You're what? With who?!" Sokka gasped, lowering his voice. "Is it Toph?"

Suki hushed him, punching his arm and Sokka held in a groan. "Ow!" 

"Sorry." She giggled, looking over her shoulder. 

Sokka followed Suki's gaze. "You're kidding! You're on a date with Ty Lee?"

The bright eyed, bubbly girl sent him an infectious smile and waved at him from the table in the corner of the cafe.

"Well, if you would answer your phone, you would know that this is our third date... and she's my girlfriend." Seeing the grin on Suki's face, Sokka couldn't help but be happy for her. 

"That's great, Suki." He says. And he meant it.

Suki's smile widened. "Yeah? It's not... weird?"

"What? No!" Sokka shook his head. "No, I'm happy for you."

"Thanks, Sokka." Suki grabs the drinks she was waiting on. "So, how's Zuko?"

"Fine." Sokka wrinkles his nose, like he does when something is bothering him. "He's getting lunch with Mai today."

"Oh? I didn't know they were still friends. Why is that a problem?"

"What? It's not!" Sokka defends. "I didn't say it was a problem!"

Suki raises a brow, "Sokka, I know you. Are you sure you aren't just... jealous?"

"Jealous?" Sokka scoffs. "Of what? Zuko can go out with whoever he wants, I don't care. And if he wants to get back together with Mai, then that- that's great!"

Suki shook her head, sighing. "If you say so."

The two are quiet for a minute, and Sokka takes a deep breath and changes the subject.

"So?" He asks, wiggling his eyebrows. "How is she?"

Suki snorts. "A better date than you!"

Sokka puts a hand over his heart and scoffs, "How dare you! You wound me, Suki, really!"

The two laugh, as the bell chimes and a new customer walks in. Sokka's pretty sure his jaw hit the floor.

He'd seen beautiful girls before (he'd dated Suki, for crying out loud!), but this girl? She looked like something out of a dream. Long, voluminous white hair fell in waves to her waist, and her bright eyes were the color of the night sky. She was a goddess, if he'd ever seen one. If Suki wasn't there to bring him back down to earth, Sokka's sure he would have been a goner. 

"Hello? Earth to Sokka?" Suki nudged his shoulder. "God, you're hopeless!"

"Who is that?" He breathes.

Suki rolls her eyes at him. "That's Yue. She works at Tui and La? With your sister?"

Sokka's not sure he heard that right. "She works where?"

Suki looks at him like he's crazy. "Tui and La?"

"Since when?!"

"I dunno, Sokka, a month or so? Why's it matter?"

Sokka pulled his phone from pocket, dialing his sisters number.

"Sokka, what are you doing?" Suki asks, exasperatedly. 

"Accepting a job offer." He waves her off.

"A job offer- Sokka! You hate Tui and La, why would you want to work there? Just ask for her number like a normal person!"

"I don't hate it! I just don't believe in all the stupid ghost stuff." He argues, waving his hand.

"Sokka-"

Sokka hushes her, as Katara answers the call. "What do you want, Sokka?"

"About what you said this morning... You still offering me a job?"

... 

Sokka's first day at Tui and La was a week later, on a Thursday, and it couldn't have gone any worse. He'd thought he would run the counter, or something, not be Aang's assistant medium-in-training! He didn't understand any of this, nor did he want to, and spent all day listening to people's ghost stories instead of out front, selling crystals and spiritual healing books, and flirting with Yue. When he was lucky, he could sneak out front and talk to her when Aang wasn't busy - he liked to meditate between customers, to help clear his head and better connect him to the spirit world (Aang's words, not his). But still, he didn't know how much more of this he could take. From the kid claiming to see shadow figures out of the corner of his eye, to the old woman who thought a spirit was stealing her jewelry, and even a farmer who thought ghosts were killing all of his cabbages, it was just too much for Sokka. The kid probably needed glasses, and the old woman was probably just misplacing her earrings. And the farmer? Well, maybe it was time to find an office job. Either way, none of this struck him as a 'paranormal experience'. Not to mention all the customers coming in for advice, usually for something ridiculous like their love life. That was Katara's job; spiritual guidance. No wonder she'd been so offended the other day.

Zuko had chuckled, amused by his ranting, when he had come home Friday night. "Cabbages?" He asked, waving chopsticks in one hand and holding a box of lo mein in the other. "Really?"

"I'm serious!" Sokka groaned, "I don't think I can take it, Zu. These people are nuts!"

Zuko brushed his hair out of his face and into a knot on top of his head, exposing his scar, and Sokka's stomach flipped. It had taken the other boy a long time to feel comfortable enough around him to wear his hair back, out of his face. It warmed Sokka's heart to think that Zuko trusted him so much. 

"Well, at least tomorrow is Saturday, right? Then you'll have a few days off."

"Yeah," Sokka's voice comes out shaky, so he clears his throat and takes another bite of his Chinese take-out. "Yeah, for sure."

"And Sokka?" Zuko cracks another charming smile. "Try not to bring home a ghost."

Sokka laughs, "No promises." He teases.

The next day, Sokka gets up earlier than he had in months, pulling on his work shirt in a rush, a black t-shirt with two koi fish designed like a yin and yang with 'Tui and La Spirit Shop' in loopy script underneath it, and heads out the door. The Jasmine Dragon was nearly empty when he got there, like it always was this early in the morning. The sun had just begun to rise. This was Zuko's favorite time to work, when he could see the sun rising over the city, and brew the days first batches of tea in peace, with only a few customers. 

"Hi, welcome to The Jasmine- Sokka?" Zuko was startled. "What are you doing here so... early?"

"What, can't I come visit my favorite roommate?" Sokka jokes, leaning against the counter with a smile.

Zuko's cheeks tint pink, and he rolls his eyes. "I'm your only roommate."

Sokka laughs, holding up his hands in surrender. "And therefore, my favorite!" He says. "I wanted to come get a drink before work."

"You want your usual?" Zuko asks, with a small smile.

"Make it two."

Zuko face falls slightly as he grabs a second cup, giving Sokka a questioning look. "Doesn't Aang like ginger tea?"

"What?" Sokka asks, brows knitted together. "Oh! No, it's not for Aang. It's for Yue! I told you about her, right?"

Zuko shakes his head and turns away from him to make the drinks.

"She works with us at Tui and La, she's super sweet! And really pretty. Actually, she might be the prettiest girl I've ever seen... Don't tell Suki I said that, though!" Sokka adds, laughing. "Hey, did you know Suki's dating Ty Lee now? I never saw that one coming."

Zuko shrugs. "Yeah, I think Mai mentioned it the other day."

Sokka's smile falls into a frown. "Oh, yeah. How is Mai?"

"She's fine." Zuko sets the drinks on the counter, taking Sokka's money. "See you later."

Sokka's eyes linger on Zuko for a moment, avoiding his golden-toned eyes, before turning to leave. "Yeah, see ya."

Yue is arranging the jewelry when he walks in to Tui and La. She gives him a kind, soft smile when she see's him. "Morning, Sokka."

"Hi!" He says, probably much too enthusiastically. "I brought you tea. Do you like tea? I hope you do. It's my favorite, from The Jasmine Dragon."

Yue laughs, "I love The Jasmine Dragon. Thank you!" 

"You're welcome!" Sokka beams, handing her the cup. "So, what are you doing?" 

"Putting out the new jewelry Gyatso made. He makes it all by hand, you know. He's going to teach me, one day."

"Wow." Sokka admires the rings, earrings, and necklaces, all intricately designed. He'd bought jewelry from Gyatso before, for Suki, but that had been almost two years ago, now.

"Aren't they beautiful?" Yue points to a bunch of necklaces hanging nearby. "I love the crystal necklaces. Every crystal is wrapped differently, see? That way no necklace is the same, they're all unique."

Yue's hand reaches to the stone hanging around her neck, holding it out for him to see. "Gyatso made me this for me when I was a kid. Ever since then, I've wanted to learn how to make them."

"It's beautiful. What is it?"

"Moonstone." Yue's smile turns bittersweet. "Gyatso has been friends with my family for a very long time. When I was little, I was really sick. He told me the moonstone would give me strength."

Sokka felt a twinge of sadness shoot through his chest. "Did it?"

Yue laughs, shrugging her shoulders. "I don't know. But I'm still here, aren't I?"

Sokka's eyes travel to the display of crystals, gaze drawn to a familiar looking golden-amber stone. It was beautiful, and warm, and familiar. It was the same glimmering shade of butterscotch and amber of Zuko's eyes in the sunlight, and Sokka so wished he didn't know that. He picked up the crystal, running his thumb over the surface. 

"Citrine." Yue says, grabbing his attention again. "Do you like crystals?"

Sokka looks back at the crystal, puzzled. "Uh, yeah, I guess. Aang and Katara have given me some over the years, but... This one reminds me of Z- of a friend of mine."

Yue smiles warmly at him. "You must really care for them."

"What?" Sokka's eyes widen slightly, "I-I mean, I guess. Why do you say that?"

"Citrine is a powerful crystal. It represents warmth and comfort, and the vitality of life. It holds the power of the sun." She smirks, "Plus, I can see it in your eyes when you talk about them. You love them."

Sokka's brows furrow, and before he can reply, Aang comes through the door. 

"Sokka, hey! You're here early. Good! We have a house call today." He says cheerfully, "Good morning, Yue!"

"Morning, Aang." She turns back to Sokka, patting his shoulder. "You should give it to them. I'll give you the employee discount."

Sokka wasn't sure what Aang had meant by a 'house call', and maybe his first mistake was not paying enough attention as Aang explained everything on the drive over. But all he could think about was that damn crystal, and Zuko's eyes. So when the pair pulled up to a house on the outskirts of town, with peeling paint and vines winding up the sides of the porch, Sokka was surprised. The day had turned cold and gloomy, light rain pattering against the windshield. Sokka had seen enough horror movies to know that this was were they should probably turn around and leave, but he quickly shut that thought down. They were probably just going to sage the house and move along. It was nothing. 

"So... What did you say we were doing here again?" 

Aang gave him a rare, irritated look, stopping the car and turning in his seat to look at him. "Look, Sokka, I know this isn't your thing, okay? Katara told me you don't believe in any of this. But this isn't like the other sessions I did this week. To be honest, a lot of that is just telling people what they want to hear. These types of sessions can be way more intense. And Pipsqueak and The Duke think this house is really haunted, and if this doesn't work, then... they're calling a priest. And trust me, they aren't the religious type."

"Haunted?" Sokka snorts. "Yeah, right. I'm sure it's just a coincidence." 

Aang shrugged, unconvinced. His usual cheeriness was replaced by a somber, serious expression that left a pit in Sokka's stomach. "Let's go find out." 

Sokka couldn't deny the eerie feeling creeping into his stomach as they approached the house, but he'd never admit to it. It's just a creepy old house, he told himself. Nothing to be worried about. Now, the two boys who answered the door? That was the scariest part yet. One was tall, towering at least two feet over Sokka, who was pretty tall himself, and burly. He looked like he could deadlift a truck. And the other boy? He was tiny, maybe even shorter than Toph, and scrawny, with freckles dotting his nose. 

Sokka grinned, looking down at the little guy. "You must be Pipsqueak."

The big one grimaced as the smaller boy scowled at Sokka, face turning red with anger. "Why does everyone always say that? I'm The Duke! He's Pipsqueak." He jutted his thumb out at the big guy - Pipsqueak. 

Sokka took a step back, laughing sheepishly. "Right... My bad, man." 

Why did all of Aang's friend's have to be so weird?

Sokka followed Aang and his friends into the house, the floorboards creaking as they walked through the entryway. Every hair on the back of Sokka's neck stood up, and a chill ran down his spine. It was freezing in here. The uneasy feeling returned, and Sokka shook his head. He'd let Aang get in his head, he was probably just trying to freak him out... right? 

The boys led them to the dining room, where they began to tell Aang everything that had been happening. 

"It was just little things at first, you know? I started having weird dreams after we moved in, and stuff was going missing. I thought we'd just misplaced it while we were moving everything in." The Duke said, face pale. "I didn't think much of it. Stuff would go missing, lights would flicker, I'd think I was hearing footsteps. But it's an old house, I figured that must be it."

"But it just kept getting worse." Pipsqueak butted in. The big guy looked terrified. "My door was opening in the middle of the night, I was hearing him call my name and would go to find him and he'd be asleep or... or not even home." 

"I thought I was going crazy, until Pipsqueak finally told me he was freaked out, too. It's bad, Aang. I keep thinking I see people walking past me, out of the corner of my eye. I hear people talking late at night, shuffling around upstairs. We've both been sleeping in the living room, together."

Aang nodded along with them as they spoke, looking around the room quizzically as he set up candles and crystals on the dining room table before taking a seat. "I definitely feel a presence here." He said, and Sokka swallowed hard. "I'm going to see if I can figure out what they want - if they have any unfinished business here, or if they're just a harmless, bothersome spirit."

Sokka didn't feel like harmless and spirit went well together, but decided to keep his thoughts to himself. 

"Sokka, would you like to light the candles?" Aang asked, then turned to The Duke and Pipsqueak, "This is Sokka's first house call. He's still in training."

This didn't seem to sit well with the two boys, but Sokka took the matches from Aang's hand nonetheless. 

"Make sure to think positive, good intentions when you're lighting the candles, too. We don't want the spirit to think we're a threat."

Great, Sokka thought. What happens if a spirit feels threatened? Nothing, he reminded himself. Spirits didn't exist!

Sokka lit the match, trying to fill his head with happy thoughts. Puppies, and fresh tea, and bean curd puffs from his favorite bakery downtown, sunshine... At the thought of the warm sun shining down on him, he remembered Yue's words from earlier. Warmth, and comfort. The vitality of life. The power of the sun. Zuko. The crystal he'd nearly forgotten about felt heavy in his pocket, and Sokka blinked. 

"Sokka?" Aang asked. "You okay?"

"Huh?" Sokka blew the match out, taking a deep breath. "Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine."

Sokka retreated to the corner of the room, to watch at a safe distance, as Aang sat up straight in his chair. Aang closed his eyes, going completely still and steadying his breathing. Sokka had seen him meditate plenty of times before, but this felt different. It felt like ages that they sat in silence, but it must have only been minutes. The sharp, sudden sound of a creaking floorboard startles Sokka so badly he lets out a totally-manly yelp, wrapping his arms around himself and pressing himself farther into the wall. The room seemed to grow colder, and Sokka shivered. What kind of heebie jeebie, voodoo trick was this?

Aang's eyes opened wide, but his gaze was distant, like he was looking straight past them all. "She's here."

And that's when Sokka decided he'd had enough. 

"I gotta go!" He squeaked, rushing out of the room and back towards the front door. 

He didn't think he'd ever run so fast in his life.

Aang didn't talk much afterwards, driving him back to his apartment and leaning back in his seat once they'd parked. 

"You okay, Sokka?" He asked, eyebrows knitted in concern.

"Yeah. Why wouldn't I be?" 

"You seemed pretty freaked out." He offered. "I guess I should've told you what to expect, but I didn't think you would listen..."

Sokka huffed, looking out the window to avoid eye contact with him. "It's all good, buddy. I was just... surprised."

"Yeah, okay. See you Monday, then?" Aang asked this timidly, like he was expecting Sokka to tell him he wouldn't be coming back to work. Sokka wondered how many others Aang had scared off.

"Yup," He agreed. "Monday. See ya."

Zuko was sitting in the kitchen when Sokka walked through the door, the delicious smell of a one of Zuko's masterful, one-of-a-kind dinner creations wafting through the apartment. 

"Hey," Zuko looked up as he walked into the kitchen, "Foods almost ready-"

"I'm not hungry." Sokka mumbled, pulling his hair out of its ponytail and running his fingers through it. In fact, Sokka felt kind of sick. 

"Oh." Zuko's reply was quiet.

"I'm just gonna... go to bed." Sokka told him, feeling guilty, looking anywhere but his eyes. "Sorry."

Sokka rushed off to his bedroom, hoping he hadn't hurt Zuko's feelings, and sat down on the edge of his bed. He squeezed his eyes shut, trying to clear his head. Today had been weird, sure. But Sokka didn't believe in ghosts. He didn't believe in malevolent spirits and divine energy, or the spirit world. It was all a hoax. So what was today, then? Aang may have been a prankster, but there's no way he would pull all that off just to freak Sokka out. It didn't make any logical sense. Then again, neither did ghosts. 

Sokka groaned, pulling the small crystal out of his pocket and studying it for a moment before setting it on his nightstand. Maybe he'd give it to Zuko tomorrow, when he had to apologize to him for blowing off dinner. 

As soon as his head hit the pillow, Sokka fell fast asleep. 

The loud crack of lightning, followed by a rumble of thunder, startled Sokka awake from his nightmare. Sokka was drenched in sweat, gasping for breath like he'd just run a 5k. Without a second thought, the remnants of his nightmare still on replay in his head, Sokka tore back the covers and took off towards Zuko's bedroom. Unlike Sokka, Zuko was a light sleeper - perks of growing up with an evil little sister, he'd told him once - and woke up as soon as Sokka opened the door. 

"Sokka?" His voice was low, groggy, as he rubbed the sleep out of his good eye. "What's-"

"Zuko," Sokka's voice came out breathy and panicked. "I think I brought a ghost home!"

Zuko sat up in his bed, the deep red blanket falling and revealing his bare chest. "Wait, what? Sokka, what are you talking about?"

"A ghost, Zuko! A spirit! I-I... Today, the creepy house, and Pipsqueak and The Duke!" Sokka rambled, "An- And I had to light the candles, and I was trying to think positive thoughts like- like puppies and rainbows but all I could think about was that stupid crystal and you're stupid, beautiful, distracting eyes! I must have messed everything up an-and the ghost must have followed me home! Zuko, what are we gonna d-"

"Sokka!" Zuko interrupts him, jumping up from his bed and cupping Sokka's face in his hands, "Slow down!"

Sokka blinked, breath caught in his throat, and he felt his cheeks heat up in embarrassment. Zuko had never been this close before, not face to face, and up close his eyes were even more beautiful than the citrine geode sitting on his nightstand. 

"Take a deep breath, okay?" Zuko was saying, voice low and calm, "I don't think you brought a ghost home with you, Sokka. I think you just had a bad dream. Okay?"

Sokka tried to slow his breathing, but his heart was beating so fast in his chest he felt like it would burst. His eyes traveled down from Zuko's, to his lips, and before Sokka could stop himself, he was kissing him. 

Zuko gasped, hands jerking away from Sokka's face in surprise. 

Sokka pulled away, squeezing his eyes shut as he filled with dread. "I- Zuko, I'm so sorry, I don't know why I-"

Before he could finish his apology, Zuko was kissing him again, urgent and soft all at the same time. His lips tasted like the jasmine tea he always drank before bed, and Sokka couldn't remember why he hadn't liked the taste before. Zuko's hands where in his hair, and on his chest, and caressing his jaw. He was warm, and sweet, and Sokka was in heaven. The storm raged on outside, as the two fell back onto the bed and finally came up for air. Sokka looked down at him, brows furrowed as the gears in his brain started ticking again. 

"Wait," Sokka said, "I thought you and Mai..."

Zuko gaped at him, "What? No!"

"But-"

"Sokka, you idiot," Zuko hesitated, swallowing hard, before kissing him again, softly, and working up his nerve. "I'm in love with you."

A dopey grin worked it's way onto Sokka's mouth, "Really?"

For the second time that day, Yue's words replayed in Sokka's head. 'I can see it in your eyes when you talk about them.' She had said. 'You love them.' How could Sokka have been so blind?

Sokka reached down and pressed his palm against Zuko's cheek, rubbing his thumb gently over the bottom of his scar. "I love you, too."

Zuko leaned into his touch, kissing his palm. "Are you okay, now?" He asked softly. 

"More than okay," Sokka breathed. "But... Zu?"

Zuko hummed in response.

"Can I... Maybe... Sleep in here tonight?" Sokka asked sheepishly, the two sitting up again. 

Zuko leaned forward and kissed his temple, wrapping an arm around him and pulling him close. "Of course."

Sokka didn't know if ghosts and spirits were real, or not. But right now, he didn't care either way. Because he'd never felt safer than sleeping in Zuko's arms.

**Author's Note:**

> Ahh! My first fic on ao3! Hope you all enjoy, I'd love to hear what you think in the comments!


End file.
